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No. 17 Navy to Host No. 13 UC-San Diego on September 12
ANNAPOLIS, Md. --
The 17th-ranked Navy men's water polo team will play its final home
game for over a month on Saturday, as 13th-ranked UC-San Diego
comes calling to Scott Natatorium for a 10:30 start on Saturday
morning. The Tritons will also play George Washington University
and Johns Hopkins University during their trip to Annapolis.
Navy is 5-4 after last weekend's season-opening Navy Open. Three
of Navy's four losses came to second-ranked Stanford and to
fourth-ranked California twice. Head coach Mike Schofield also
subbed liberally all weekend trying to find the right combinations,
while giving the younger players a chance to see what they could do
against top-flight competition.
"We are looking forward to the game tomorrow and hopefully, we can
get a nice crowd before the football game," said Navy head coach
Mike Schofield. "UC-San Diego is a very good program. They have
been to the NCAA Tournament a bunch of times and have an excellent
coaching staff. It should be a very good game and we are excited to
get back in the pool."
The Mids are led offensively by junior Luke Baldwin (La
Grange Park, Ill.), who had an impressive Navy Open with
13 points (6 g, 7 a) n seven games played. Baldwin was likely
Navy's most consistent performer last week and Schofield is looking
for more of the same, out of not only Baldwin, but the entire
squad.
Sophomore Kyle Wertz (San Diego, Calif.) ranks
second on the team with 11 points (8 g, 3 a) and tallied his 50th
career goal last weekend in only his 32nd career game. Senior
Johnny Meiners (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) also scored
in double figures last week with 10 points (9 g, 1 a), while
sophomore Stevie Ray (Baytown, Texas) and junior
Jordan Carter (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.) added nine
points each. The Mids played last weekend without the services of
senior Kevin Bell (Naperville, Ill.), who is the
team's active leader in career points with 108 (59 g, 49 a).
Defensively, Brett Rajchel (Winter Park, Fla.)
recorded 35 saves last weekend and needs just six more for 300 in
his career. Sophomore Chase Hansen (Newberg, Ore.)
appeared in seven games, registering 19 saves in mostly a reserve
role.
The contest will be a tune-up before the Mids swing into high
gear, competing in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC)
Championship on Sept. 19-20, and battling Bucknell University and
Princeton University in league games on Oct. 3.
UC -San Diego leads the all-time series with Navy, 11-7, with the
last meeting coming last year at Princeton. The Tritons held off
Navy in that contest, 9-6, in mid-September.
The game will be played at Scott Natatorium in Macdonough Hall and
admission is free.
Release courtesy Navy Athletic Communications
